1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to emulsifiers, and in particular, to biocompatible emulsifiers that can be used to create stable emulsions, such as blood substitutes or drug delivery vehicles.
2. Description of the Related Art
Emulsifiers are well-known agents, such as soaps, that promote the formation and stabilization of an emulsion. Preparation of emulsions is relatively straightforward in most instances. When, however, the emulsion is a processed food or a biological fluid, such as artificial blood, the emulsifier must not only be capable of forming and stabilizing the emulsion, but must also be non-toxic to the person or animal ingesting or receiving the emulsion internally or externally.
It has been shown that certain amphiliphilic linear polymer-dendrimer hybrids can be used as surfactants. See Chapman, et al., xe2x80x9cHydroamphiphiles: Novel Linear-Dendritic Blood Copolymer Surfactants,xe2x80x9d J. Am. Chem. Soc. 1994, 116, 11195-96. Surfactants, however, differ from emulsifiers, in that the former is intended to interact with water, while the later must be able to interact both with water, or an aqueous phase, and must also be able to interact with a second, typically non-aqueous, liquid phase.
There remains a need in the art for a biocompatible emulsifier useful in creating stable emulsion for use in foods, drugs, and biological fluids.
The present invention provides an emulsion of biocompatible materials, the emulsion being formed and stabilized by a polyethylene glycol-dendrimeric-poly(lysine) hybrid. The hybrid may be a first through fourth generation polymer, with generation 3 polymer being preferred.